Field of Invention
The present invention relates to ice cream or yogurt machine, and more particularly to an air inlet arrangement and method for an ice cream or yogurt machine which is capable of maintaining a stable air-solution proportion for making ice cream or yogurt.
Description of Related Art
A conventional air inlet arrangement for an ice cream or yogurt machine usually comprises an elongated air-solution tube and an air nozzle provided on a top end of the air-solution tube wherein air is sucked into the air-solution tube through the air nozzle. Moreover, the air-solution tube further has a solution inlet and a discharge outlet formed thereon, wherein ice cream or yogurt solution is arranged to be sucked into the air-solution tube through the solution inlet. The ice-cream or yogurt solution is then arranged to be mixed with the air and is further processed to form the ice-cream or yogurt.
A major problem with the above-mentioned conventional air inlet arrangement is that every time the air inlet arrangement is used to mix air with ice cream or yogurt solution, a substantial amount of residue is left in the air-solution tube and the residue has not been adequately mixed with air. When the ice-cream or yogurt machine is restarted to produce another serving of ice cream or yogurt, air may not be adequately sucked into the air inlet arrangement. The result is that the solution and the air may not be adequately mixed and the air-solution proportion of the mixture cannot be maintained at an optimal level.